Improvement in boor-latches



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Letters Patent No. 93,685, dated August lf?, 1869.

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IMPROVEMENT IN 1DOOIR-I'JATCIE- IESl Odw- The Schedule referred to inthese Letters Patent and making pari: of the same.

To all whom it may concern:

Beit known that I, F. W. DEAN, of Tremont, county vof Tazewell, in thekState of Illinois,.have invented a newand improved Door-Latch; and I dohereby declare that the following is a full and exact descriptionthereof, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, making a partof this speciiication, in which like parts are indicated by like lettersiu the several` h'gures. y

' The nature of my invention' consists in construct-ing a latch or lock,dispensing with all springs, and making the outer case or coveringanswer 'the purpose of a pull. f

To enablethose skilled in the art to make and use my invention, I willproceed to describe its construction and operation.

In the drawingsp Figure 1 represents an elevation of my improvement, sayon the inside of a door, A being the -catch or keeper, and B, thecovering of the latchproper,

which forms the pull by which to open the door on that side.

Figure 2 is an elevatiou'of a back plate, C, ou the same side of thedoor, its latch and lever, the covering-plate B, being removed;

a shows, in dotted outline, the position of the keeper'.

b is the latch propel', pivoted at c, or rotating on a v screw whichfastens B and O to the door, the inner `end of this latch beingweighted, as seen, to bring it down automatically after having beenraised lby hand.

Itis shown raised in this figure, in dotted outline,

as also its lever, its upper-movement iu this direction being limited bya stop, d, a mere projection on the outerface of plate (l.

Underneath the latch lfthere is a lever, e, shown more distinctly inFigure 4, which is a partial section of the stile, 8vo.

This lever has a projection, j', at right angles to it, which passesthrough plate C, and some dstance into the door, its inner end beingsquare, or some other suitable shape to answer its purpose, or by whichit may be rotated by an outside lever, D, on the other side of the door,and the cylindrical `part of which, g, entering the door, being hollow,and fitting over f, by which to impart motion to e-or raise the latch bfrom the outside. A

A'projection or stop, h, on. plate C, and under the lever e, holds itand the latch b in a horizontal. position, or from falling below theplate C or pull B, which covers and conceals them.

That part of the latch b which enters the keeper, isl so shaped,rounded, or curved on the inner side and top, making its facestriangular Aand the ends pointed, as that when it strikes the keeper, itwill' rise automatically, being forced entirely under B, when the I doorwill shut andthe latch fall, its extreme end passing ybehind the,keeper.

lhe keeper may be shaped alike at top and bottom, so as to answer for aright or left-hand door.-

A sliding stop, fi, is shown in iig. 1, for the latch, but

a pivoted one, as usual, may be substituted.

The pull `or plate B may be so shaped at each end 'as to answer for aright or left-hand lock, by a slight alteration in the pattern, whichmust be adapted to -the securing and operation of the latch, as also tohold in place its lever e, anyllateral movement of which is .to beprevented by plate B, which has a propen bearing against the end of e,where itv is connected to f, being countersnnk, '&c.

In this case, also, the back plate C should also be made alike at bothends.

The lever emust always be of a suitable length to releasethe latch fromthe keeper, and those parts of the levers e and l) which enter the door,and tit each other, can be made adjustable, so as to suit differentthicknesses of doors.

An ordinary door-pull, E, tig. 3, may be fitted on the outside of thedoor, over the lever D.

The operationl issimply as follows:

Supposiug the door to be closed, to enter from the outside, the fingersare placed under the lower edge of E, pushing up the lever I). Thiscarries up also the inside lever c, and through it raises the latch l1,as shown in dotted lines in fig. 2, releasing it from the catch A, whenthe door can be opened.

It will be found self-shutting, or can be shut by raising the latch, thesame as in opening it.

The door can be opened from the inside the same as from the ontside.

The several Vparts are constructed of the usual materials, as may befound convenient.

, The 'pulls may bc japanncd, bronzed, plated, or

enamelled with glass or porcelain.

rlhe putting on or tting of the latch to the door is too evident torequire description.

The 'advantages of a my latch are, that it is more easily and quietlyoperated, is not liable to 'get out of order, having no spring, and iscertain to catch, ifv

properly constructed;v

A door can be closed by gentle pressure, like others, withoutiaising thelatch by hand, and the article can be produced at small cost.

The pulls form acase .to the operating-parts.

A latch constructed and operated like inine may be enclosed in a case,or be made apart of an ordinary lock.

The latch may be enclosed in a metallic ease, and a detached pullsecured over it.

I am aware of the patent of Shepard and Sigourney. This I do not cla-im.My invention requires no cutting of the door, but can be screwed uponthe outside of the same.

Having thus described my invention,

What I. claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent of theUnited States, is-

1. The combination of plate/.0, weighted latch b, and levers e D,constructed and arranged in the manner as shown and described.

2. The combination of cover or pull B with the several parts aforesaid,when an'anged as described.

F. W. DEAN.

Witnesses:

S. M. HOBART, W. W. STILEs.

